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Sunday, 6 January 2013

12 of 2012

...Better late than never? Apologies for my longer-than-planned break, and the belatedness of this "best of 2012" year in review post; I'm looking forward to catching up with all of your picks (and other blog posts, and comments) soon.

My Favourite (New) Things: 2012

(I've excluded any new shades in formulas I was already familiar with -- as I'm much more texturally picky this helped focus my selection from a pretty good year for makeup discoveries.)

Shu Uemura Brightening UV Underbase Mousse SPF30 A moisturising, texture- and colour-correcting primer to knock out both sallowness and redness at once, and vanish pores, without leaving skin too ashy-cool or matte; effective enough that I can usually skip foundation afterwards.

Suki CC Cream 02 Whitening I still enjoy the ritual of applying foundation, even (maybe especially) when it isn't a necessity, and a tiny drop or two of this pigmented lavender-tinted bargain (about £2 at Sasa) lightens and neutralises most of the 'palest' shades on the market to actually match my skin, without impairing their formulas.

Vapour Organic Beauty Atmosphere Luminous Foundation 90(more) Any foundation that matches me out of the box [okay, it's a shade dark now in the depths of winter, but nothing a dab of Suki can't solve] is a noteworthy discovery; factor in a creamy, clean-ingredients-filled formula, a skinlike finish and a small company with decent ethics to support and we have a favourite for this year, and no doubt many to come.

Burberry Sheer Touch Concealer 01 (more) The best texture I've ever encountered in a concealer, and the perfect pink tones in a shade darker than my skin to knock back my blue/green circles without making my face look unnaturally flat. One click suffices so this tube has been going strong since May, with daily use. (Honourable mention goes to Korres Materia Herba Anti-Dark Circles Eye Cream (reviewed here, with my other skincare discoveries of 2012), without which this click-pen wouldn't provide sufficient coverage.)

Rouge Bunny Rouge Eye Gloss Typical of RBR, to nail a product I'd been craving for years: a truly glossy (no glitter or iridescent sheen), absolutely un-sticky highlighter, versatile enough to use under, over or mixed with powders on the lid, or elsewhere on the face. Stands on its own in minimalist looks too.

L'Oreal Telescopic False Lash Waterproof Mascara (worn here and here) Every bit as good as the Fasio mascara I reviewed earlier this year, but available locally, and currently on BOGOF at Boots. Made in Italy, but with the gimmicky wand and separate-remover-needed apocalypse-proof formula more usually found in Japanese brands.

Most of the colour products I've already reviewed:Dolce&Gabbana Soleblush (here) and Guerlain Rouge G L'Extrait M25 Colère (here) are both great examples of bright, clear reds with enough corally warmth to counteract my naturally cool pink cheeks and mauve lips, in faultless formulas.THREE Flash Performance Eyeliner 05 Eye Rock(here) is the best black liner I can imagine, and I've professed my love for the Shu Uemura Karl Lagerfeld Prestigious Bordeaux Palette sofrequentlyandrecently that surely no more need be said.

Kiko Long-Lasting Stick Eyeshadow in 04 Golden Chocolate, which in short is another By-Terry-Ombre-Blackstar-a-like, and even cheaper than the Topshop version -- review now up, worn here.

Scent of the Year: L'Artisan Seville À L'Aube

I've helpfully drawn your attention to the reason for my purchase....

Totally cheating, since this is the only unplanned fragrance purchase I made this year. But I don't like playing favourites with my pretties anyway -- it feels like....playing favourites. I reach for lush white florals to chase away winter blues and this one is a particularly gorgeous rendition: bright orange-blossom and honeyed jasmine, delicately edged in incense, the sweetness cut with subtlest lavender and lifted by sparkling pink pepper -- bottled sunlight.

PS If any of you remember my resolution last January to buy only twelve new products in the year (discounting replacements and staples) and was expecting this post to wrap that up -- in conclusion, big fat fail. Of the eight products I bought before nixing the plan, I've kept two, only one of which (D&G Sole) made it onto this list of favourites (the other was RBR Calypso eye pencil), which is actually worse than my usual impulsive/unplanned hit-rate. [Overall my collection has shrunk -- of which more in a future post -- but I don't think the 12-12 project deserves any credit for that.]
For the last few months of 2012 I've had more success employing a one-in-one-out system of replacement buying, with no 'free' purchases, and will be continuing with that plan in 2013.

A new post! Gasp! To be honest I've been checking back to this blog for the links on the right hand side >.>I MUST get hold of that vapour foundation. My SSE has been making my skin misbehave of late and I can't say I'm too impressed.

Love the post! Glad to hear about your gems :) Quick question re the Korres eye cream - do you know which of the new eye creams corresponds to the one you use? I am sorely in need of under-eye circle help. Thanks!

<3 Dear Mimi, I only have one more Korres cream to try but none of the other 4 I've sampled seem similar at all. Having emailed Korres they don't claim that any new product is a direct substitute either. Although now that my circles have faded so much I couldn't even say if any of the other creams have that fading effect -- but the Quercetin + Oak Antiageing Antiwrinkle one *claims* to.

Hehehe, somehow the words "edition limitee" (especially in French) can increase the buy-osity. Actually, L'Artisan was my fave new scent too, only the (not so limited edition) L'ete en Douce.So glad you discovered Kika: they are massively good and I really want that Three eyeliner soon, and trying out more of Vapour

First of all thanks a lot for your wonderful posts and aiding and abetting my addiction through 2012. I wish you and everyone a very happy new year!

I really wanted to buy Sole but I ended up with two of Tom Ford blushes and they are really that good! Even they look a bit shimmery on the pan, it only translates a mere glow on your face (yes, I am desperately in love and shameless about it :))By the way, did you check TFord's stick foundation? It seems promising to me as a Nobara fan.

I bought RBR eye gloss with your recommendation and very happy with it as long as I use it as a highlighter but I am not able to mix it with eye shadows. Every time I tried to mix them eyeshadow creases instantly. Help!

Also thank you very much for pointing out Colere and Shu PB, they are my favorites for 2012 as well.

Sadly I haven't been successful with most Tom Ford products (brush aside!) so far, but a Nobara comparison will always get my attention! Thanks for the rec.

Re: RBR eye gloss, I like it *because* it gives an editorially glossy / slightly crease-prone effect. I don't think it's a good idea if you have problems with creasing normally and dislike it! You could try using the tiniest possible amount, maybe over a traditional eyeshadow primer (the kind designed to stop creasing) and see if that makes it better :)

I have 5 lasting sticks by kiko but finally except 06 don't like them very much, they tend to be very glittery, the 06 is subtle though. Their best shadows are the water shadows, the 228 taupe is a dupe for mac's stolen moment, there is also a dupe for round midnight.

So glad you're back, Kate--I had been crossing my fingers for a 2012 roundup post! :P Love all your picks, especially that gorgeous THREE eyeliner. I have been NEEDING that liner so badly--I really wish it were more easily available! :/ Also, still sad about the discontinuation of that Korres eye cream--it sounds soo nice!